Title: Mermaid crackfic
Author: Coreopsis
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairing: Rodney McKay/Peter Grodin, others implied
Rating: G
Date: December, 2004
Note/warning: This ficlet, written in LJ comments, starts dramatic and ends very silly.
It was inspired by comments made by Nemoinis while we were discussing the episode Before I Sleep, so big spoiler for that.
The water is rising. The lower level is completely flooded, and now it's washing across the floor, lapping at their feet. By the time his ankles are under water, Peter has moved to Rodney's side. They've done all they can, no hope left. Rodney's fingers scrabble at Peter's and then their hands are clasped tightly. A death grip, Peter thinks with a flash of amusement before fear takes over once more. By the time the water is at his waist, Peter has his arms wrapped tight around Rodney. Rodney buries his face in the crook where Peter's neck meets his shoulder and doesn't say a word. If Peter had ever thought about it, he'd have imagined Rodney going out as he lives, talking nonstop, complaining all the way. But Rodney is silent, just hanging on for dear li--well, the time they have left.
As the water licks at his chest, Peter tilts Rodney's head up and looks him in the eyes. He realizes that he should have given Rodney a chance back in Antarctica, since they clearly don't have one here. He likes Rodney, and maybe if he'd been more open, Rodney would have liked him too. Their time is almost up, so Peter does the only thing he can: He presses his lips to Rodney's and kisses him while the water rises higher and higher. After a moment of surprise or indecision or whatever goes on in his head, Rodney parts his lips and kisses Peter back with a passion that hints at more than just desperation. He kisses back with warmth and affection and eagerness.
And as the water rises over their locked lips to their noses and eyes, Peter feels cold, strong hands touching him--more hands than Rodney possesses--so he opens his eyes and sees a half dozen people...creatures...mermaids surrounding him and Rodney. Rodney is staring at the mermaids, his eyes locked wide open and Peter realizes he never closed them. Rodney was staring death down, even as he gave Peter comfort and affection and accepted the same in return.
The mermaids wave their hands in front of Peter's and Rodney's faces and suddenly Peter feels not just the desire to stop holding his breath but a command to do so. He opens his mouth and pulls water into his lungs fully expecting to die, but...his head clears, his nose, throat, and lungs stop burning, and his feet and legs start to tingle. He looks up at Rodney in fear and wonder to find that Rodney's mouth is moving. It takes a moment for Peter to focus, but when he does he discovers that Rodney is shooting questions at the mermaids faster than they can answer. One of the greenhaired women frowns at him and starts pulling at his pants. Indignantly, Peter yells, "Hey!" but there are hands tugging at his clothes as well and they are stronger than he or Rodney. By the time they are both naked, the tingling in his feet and legs has become almost unbearably strong, even though he would still not classify it as pain, and realizes what is happening. Unable to look at himself, he watches as Rodney's legs fuse together and then his feet fuse and grow and unfurl into a wide sweeping tail. The scales covering the lower half of Rodney's body are an incredibly beautiful iridescent mix of blue and green that Peter has only ever seen on the eye of a peacock's tail. Peter gathers his courage to look down at his own body and sees the same, but his eyes are immediately drawn back to Rodney.
Rodney...his Rodney. Who is shaking free of the mermaids who held him and reaching for Peter, taking his hands and swinging him around in a joyous circle of Hey, we're not dead!
And then they swim off into the ocean of Atlantica (thank you, Lt. Ford) and live happily ever after with MerShep and MerZelenka, who were fished out of the crashed ship by other mermaids.
The end.
Postscript: Because Canthlian asked where MerSumner was, I have to pass on the sad news that Sumner died in this time line too. He wasn't cut out to live in a matriarchal society.
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